Deere, Hydrogenics to develop fuel cells for commercial vehicles

Hydrogenics Corporation announced July 28 it has entered a five-year agreement with Deere & Company to continue research and development efforts aimed at the use of hydrogen and fuel cells in commercial vehicles. Hydrogenics, based in Ontario, Canada, launched an off-road mobility initiative earlier this year, saying those applications present earlier viable markets for hydrogen fuel cells than broader applications such as the automobile. Under the agreement, Deere and Hydrogenics will collaborate on both fuel cell developments and engineering to integrate them into vehicle systems. Pierre Rivard, president and chief executive of Hydrogenics, said broadening the company’s relationship with Deere is an important milestone toward achieving fuel cell commercialization. “Through this agreement we expect to transition our products from R&D prototypes or demonstration units to robust commercial products,” Rivard said.